Zeeshan Farooqui Comments on DGCA Contempt Plea in Mint Article

In a recent Mint article analysing the escalating dispute between pilot associations and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), Zeeshan Farooqui highlighted the serious legal ramifications arising from the contempt plea filed before the Delhi High Court.

Zeeshan noted that the pilot bodies are expected to argue that the DGCA may have acted contrary to its court-recorded assurances by weakening critical provisions of the newly enforced Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) norms. These norms implemented on 1 November after a decade of litigation and explicit judicial directions to establish robust fatigue-management standards were partially rolled back by the regulator following industry disruptions and mass flight cancellations.

According to Zeeshan, the core contention is that DGCA had expressly assured the Court of strict enforcement of mandated rest and duty-time limits but subsequently diluted these safeguards under airline pressure. Such an action, he said, could be viewed as non-compliance with both the spirit and letter of its earlier commitments, thereby exposing the regulator to heightened judicial scrutiny.

With the matter listed for hearing on 15 December, Zeeshan emphasised that the High Court retains broad powers to re-assert oversight if it finds that the regulator’s conduct undermines prior judicial directives. This could potentially reopen questions on whether aviation-safety frameworks particularly those designed to prevent pilot fatigue are being compromised in a manner inconsistent with public-safety imperatives or the Court’s supervision.

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